A Tale of Two Hogwarts
by The Phoenix Rising Team
Summary: When Snape falls down the proverbial rabbit hole into an alternate universe, can he survive, Superspy Draco, Competant!Lockhart, and Crazy!Dumbledore in a world run by Death Eaters and monsterous creatures? This is a revamped Part 1 of the Phoenix Rising
1. Chapter 1: A Prelude to Darkness

**_Chapter One: Prelude to Darkness_**

The June air lingered, stifling and sticky, although it was well past sundown. The cool of the Hogwarts dungeon was welcoming to Severus Snape as he made his nightly rounds, so it was a shame he couldn't spend his entire time there. Absently he navigated the labyrinthine staircases and passages. There was no real reason why he needed to make his rounds tonight. He knew he wouldn't find a single student breaking curfew. The students had just gone home for the summer after a very trying year.

"Still awake, Severus?" a voice said behind him. Snape started and realized he had wandered straight to Dumbledore's office. "Why don't you come in? I was going to wait until morning, but since we are both awake, I have some things I'd like to discuss with you." Dumbledore turned to the gargoyle and said, "Blood Pops." Snape snorted.

"Sit! Sit!" Dumbledore waved to a chair in front of his desk, which Snape took. " I just made some tea, would you care to join me? I'm afraid I've already added the honey however, I hope you don't mind honey in your tea." Snape shook his head.

"Now then," Dumbledore said as he settled himself behind his desk, "to business! First, I would like to discuss your position here at Hogwarts."

Snape looked up sharply, nearly spilling tea on himself, "My position, Headmaster?" Could it be that Dumbledore finally saw that the students, now, more than ever before, needed a good Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?

"Yes, well your positi-"

The door flew open and a woman stumbled in closely followed by a breathless professor McGonagall in tartan pyjamas. Dumbledore stood up with a quizzical expression on his face.

"I need to use your fireplace," She gasped as she sank into a nearby chair, she had a gash across her arm that looked as though it had been cauterized, clearly a spell wound, "Death Eaters…" She stopped to catch her breath, it looked as though she had run the entire way.

"Care for some tea?" Dumbledore offered calmly but the woman gave him a look and waved it away as if it clearly wasn't the time for tea.

Snape eyed the woman carefully, noting the fact that she wore in her belt a row of sharpened pikes, "Why do you need the fireplace?" Snape asked coldly.

There was an uncomfortable silence.

Finally she looked up, "I was in the woods, when I heard whispering in a clearing nearby, I thought it was possibly a vampire. But I reached the clearing, and it was some sort of … well, I don't know… it looked like…. Like…. Tangible darkness…" She was calmer now, and no longer out of breath, her eyes began to roam around as she talked, " I turned around to leave, but a Death Eater attacked me. I was closer to this end of the woods. I ran here. Now, can I use your fireplace?"

Snape looked back at her, saying nothing, feeling slightly uncomfortable at the look she was giving him. He broke his gaze and looked to Dumbledore.

"Ah… what did you say your name was?"

"Deanna, Deanna Sande."

"Well, Deanna, obviously this must be reported immediately, Severus, why don't you take our guest to the infirmary? Those burns look serious. Madame Pomfrey will see to them immediately."

"This? This is nothing… really. I can-"

"Nonsense! I insist. Severus? Will you please?" He gave him a look.

"Certainly headmaster." Snape said, his face unreadable as he escorted her from the room.

Deanna, "Really, you don't have to…" Snape said nothing, "I'm fine. It's just a fleshwound."

Snape looked as though he hadn't even heard as he brought her down the hall. "Hey buddy, I'm talking to you…. you mute...?" She asked, not taking her eyes off Snape.  
Snape stopped, "I most certainly am not mute." He said finally, continuing down the hall with Deanna in tow.

"Yeah, nice to meet you too," she said sarcastically. They both lapsed into silence again, and for a few minutes the only sounds were their footsteps on the marble floor. Finally Deanna broke the silence, asking, "So... who are you anyway?"

"I'm the Potions master."

"Ahh…right, Severus Snape, now I remember…" More silence. "So it's true what they say about you," Deanna said as they turned a corner in the dark hall.

He drew in a breath sharply, "And what is it that they say about me?"

"You really are a great greasy git."

He stopped suddenly, turning to face her. "And you really are an unfeeling murderer."

Deanna's expression turned dark, "Oh, you're one of those... _bleeding hearts_…." She mumbled, "Your hearts really _would_ be bleeding without people like me."

"Surely not every va-" he began before she cut him off.

"Don't give me that," she spat, looking away. She looked as if she would say more but a low growl echoing from an unknown direction distracted her.

Both of them turned to see a young woman standing in the hallway with a black cat draped across her shoulder. She was quite tall, with the grace and poise of the feline that stared at them from its high perch. She wore deep green robes with a high-necked collar that came to her chin. Her hands were covered in black gloves. Her long curtain of jet-black hair obscured her face, but there was a flash of green as she passed her poison stare over both Deanna and Snape in turn.

"If you two are quite done with your... petty bickering..." She focused on someone who was standing behind the both of them, and her gaze softened slightly. "Albus..."

"I hope I am not too late." The woman again eyed Snape and Deanna.

"Oh, not at all. No rest for the weary, I'm afraid," Dumbledore said, deliberately misinterpreting her statement. "I have some things to discuss with you. I trust Dobby has settled you into your quarters?"

"Yes."

"Good." He smiled and turned to Snape, "Severus, I would like you to meet – or remeet, rather – Miss Raven Xavier, our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Miss Xavier," he motioned in Deanna's direction, "Miss Sande, a vampire hunter – by the way, Miss Sande, I've contacted the authorities – and Miss Xavier, you know Professor Snape already, I believe."

Raven nodded.

"Good, now that we've got the introductions out of the way, I believe Miss Sande would probably like to get to the infirmary now. Follow me please." The group followed Dumbledore to the Hospital wing where Madame Pomfrey stood waiting at the door.

"Ah! Look at those!" Pomfrey tutted. "Do you know which spell was used?" she asked as she herded Deanna into the hospital wing.

"Now, you two." Dumbledore eyed Snape through his half-moon spectacles, "Severus, would you be so kind as to escort Professor Xavier to the teachers' wing?"

"Thank you, Headmaster, but I know where it is. You tend to your guest." She nodded at the infirmary doors and then turned on her heel and headed in the direction of the teachers wing, with her cat still sitting securely on her shoulder.

Neither Snape nor Dumbledore moved until she and her pet were out of sight.

"She's back, then?" Snape said finally.

Dumbledore nodded.

Snape sighed, "Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"Severus…"

"We've already discussed it, I know."

"I have very good reasons why you shouldn't have that position, Severus, and I hope you will trust me on that, as I trust you."

"Of course, Headmaster," Snape agreed, though he didn't sound at all convinced. "So where has she been all these years?"

"Traveling abroad," Dumbledore replied enigmatically.

Snape bit back his growing frustration and hastily changed the subject. "What of that Sande woman, the vampire hunter? We can't have her prying…"

"I will see to it that she is healed and sent on her way. I have informed Alastor Moody of the situation. Meanwhile, perhaps you can do some reconnaissance in the forest?"

Snape nodded, "No rest for the weary." He smirked mirthlessly. "I'll be ready within a half an hour."

As Raven headed to her new quarters, her cat leaped from her shoulder to bound ahead of her. He turned and fixed her with his emerald gaze.

_how long are we staying in this place?_ came a purring voice in her head.

_For as long as Albus needs us_, she sent back over their mutual link. _He helped me out a lot when I was younger, and I owe him._ She noticed the feline began to fidget, and she knew he was itching to go out and explore. _Thorne, why don't you go out hunting? There's a forest nearby, and there should be plenty of game to keep you occupied._

_don't have to tell me twice_, he muttered before bounding off to parts unknown.

Once her cat was gone, Raven arrived at her new quarters and immediately began unpacking her few belongings. A few articles of clothing, a sketchbook, several vials filled with a murky solution, and a sharp, curved dagger were carelessly tossed in various drawers before she finally sat on the edge of her bed and looked around in distaste. It was much too opulent in here for her liking... too many unnecessary things. She would seek out the house-elves tonight to get rid of what she didn't need. All she wanted was a cot, a cabinet and a desk. Everything else was wasteful. It reminded her of...

She stopped herself mid-thought, shutting her eyes tight. _Must not think of back then..._ She took a deep breath, opened her eyes and stood up. She had to get out of here, out of this castle. She left the room, making her way through familiar hallways, until she found herself outside, breathing the cool night air. Thinking only of working off all the tension in her body, Raven made her way towards the Forbidden Forest.

The darkness of the woods had a calming effect on Raven. As she wandered through the trees, a scent caught her attention. It was the metallic tang of blood.

Curious, Raven followed the trail to a small clearing. There she found the remains of what appeared to be a deer. Pulling off one of her gloves, she knelt down next to the animal's corpse and ran a finger through a ragged tear in its flesh. It was still warm, which meant it was a fresh kill. She stood, absentmindedly licking the blood off of her finger.

_you really should be sleeping..._ came a rumbling voice in her head.

Raven smiled, and answered aloud. "I wasn't tired... and I thought I could use the exercise." She looked up to see large green eyes peering down at her. "I see you've had a nice dinner, eh?" Her question was answered with a snort of disgust.

_hunting here is poor. most things in here are skin, bones and fur..._

Raven smirked, "You shouldn't be so picky. Come down here."

The tree branches above her rustled as a dark shape dropped smoothly to the ground. It was the size of saber-toothed tiger with inky black fur, silver scythe-like claws, bat-like wings curled tightly over its back, and large green eyes. It moved towards Raven with unnatural speed, but she didn't move, only smiled. Thorne butted his large head against her chest and purred.

Suddenly both Raven and Thorne froze, as a sound reached their sensitive ears.

_someone else is here..._ came his rumbling purr in her head.

"I know," Raven replied quietly. They both looked at each other for a few moments before Thorne nodded his massive head and silently disappeared into the shadows. Raven turned around and watched the forest around her, waiting for Thorne's return.

A few moments later he slunk into the clearing. Thorne, who was now the size of a housecat, shifted back into his natural form. He sat in front of Raven, running his tongue over dagger-like teeth.

_a human's in the forest.. the same one from earlier in the castle._

Raven reached out to stroke Thorne's massive head, and tilted her own in thought.  
_So the vampire hunter is in the forest?_ she thought to herself. _What could she possibly be doing?_

With a slight nod from Raven, Thorne slipped back into the shadows. Raven made her way in the direction Thorne had last seen the vampire hunter. She decided that it would be better to let her know that there was someone else in the forest. She didn't relish the thought of having to pull a stake out of herself.

As she stalked through the darkness, her pupils dilated like a cat's, making her surroundings seem as clear as if it were daylight. She saw Deanna ahead of her, distracted by something in the underbrush.

Raven smiled and spoke. "What brings you here so late at night?"

Deanna smirked. "Me? Well... what can I say? I love the nightlife..." she replied smartly. "And what are you doing out here so late?"

Raven's lips twisted into a smirk.

"It was such a lovely night that I couldn't bear to be cooped up inside." She leaned against a tree trunk and snapped her gloved fingers. Thorne, in his normal house-cat guise, dropped down from the branches above to land smoothly on Raven's shoulders.

Deanna smirked back. "Cute cat..." she murmured, raising an eyebrow.

Thorne settled onto his owner's shoulders and looked at the Vampire Hunter straight in the eyes, his piercing gaze filled with intelligence. Raven causally scratched his chin and raised an eyebrow.

"_Cute_... Certainly not a word that I would associate with him."

Deanna nodded. "Although much cuter than some of the things I've seen."

Both Raven and Thorne tilted their heads as if hearing something that the hunter could not.

"Well, it's been... interesting. But I have other things to attend to... Enjoy your night." Deanna said casually. The thing in the forest wasn't far off. She had to investigate.

Raven slowly turned around, and fixed her with a cold, almost reptilian stare. "Let's drop the pretenses, shall we?" she hissed. "You should be in the infirmary."

"You're not my keeper."

"No. I'm not." Raven lifted her head, breathing in deep. She caught a strange scent in the air, something naggingly familiar... Deanna took that moment to disappear into the underbrush.

_we should leave her..._ Thorne purred through their mental link.

_No_, she sent back, _something's wrong with her, she's seen something disturbing... and it wouldn't do if she saw things that she is not meant to see. Plus, Dumbledore would want to know where she is..._

Raven pushed her way through the brush roughly, but oddly not making a noise as she trampled through the forest. Thorne dug his claws into the material of her robes so as to not fall off. He was chuckling softly through their mental link.

_lucky for you there's not a new moon out... then she'd get a real eyeful._

_Shut up_, she sent back. The scent was getting stronger. The familiarity of it was really beginning to unnerve her.

She stopped suddenly and held her hand out for Deanna to do the same. She motioned her head to another clearing just ahead. Something was writhing in the darkness.

Deanna stopped and squinted her eyes and they focused on the dark shadows moving in the clearing. _What the..._ she thought.

The dark whirling mass gathered in the center of the clearing. It seemed to suck in all the light around it. Smoky tendrils snaked across the ground in almost every direction.  
Raven held her arm out so that Deanna would not go near. "Whatever you do, do not let it touch you.. Don't even go near it," she hissed.

Deanna stared at the thing in the clearing. "What the hell is it?" she asked, her voice hardly audible.

Raven shook her head, "No time to explain," she turned around and stalked back the way they had come, "we need to go back and speak with Dumbledore... _Now_."

"Oh, you won't be going anywhere…" came an unnaturally-high pitched voice from the shadow of a nearby tree. The tall figure slunk out of the shadows, twirling his wand with a nimbleness that belied his years.

"I suppose you thought I was dead?" he asked them, seeing the recognition and utter terror on Raven and Deanna's faces. "I'm afraid the Ministry has been quite grievously misinformed... I am, and ever have been, _very much alive_..."

The evil red glint in the man's eyes -- if he could be called a man -- illuminated his snakelike smile.

"It would take a great deal more than a single curse to finish me off..."

It was Voldemort.


	2. Chapter 2: Descent into Darkness

**_Chapter 2 Decent into Darkness._**

Fighting back her fear, Raven quickly composed herself. _Thorne... get ready_, she sent out, as she walked boldly towards Voldemort.

"You won't stop us from closing this rip," she hissed softly, venom dripping from every word.

Voldemort raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Ah... you think to thwart my plans..." the dark wizard chuckled. "No matter... You won't be around long enough do anything about it..."

Masked Death Eaters appeared out of the thick of the forest, their wands trained on Deanna and Raven -- they were outnumbered three to one.

Voldemort's gaze turned to Deanna. "You were here before... It would have been wiser to stay out of the Dark Lord's way... Or have you come for revenge?" He snorted derisively, "How… predictable."

The Death Eaters closed in on the two, and Raven realized they were being pushed towards the swirling mass. Quickly and quietly, Raven muttered a charm under her breath.

As they faced off, a green light sparked just inches from Voldemort's head.

"Run!"

Both of them looked around for the source of the voice, but Thorne returned it with a snarling force.

_RUN NOW!_

Thorne bulldozed through the phalanx of Death Eaters.

Without further prompting, Deanna and Raven ran towards the black swirling mass. Voldemort saw this and raised his wand, but he was prevented by 600 pounds of coiled muscle wrapped in midnight fur. Thorne had taken his true form and had plowed right through Voldemort with the force of a freight train. His wand had been knocked from his hand and sent tumbling into the forest.

Thorne kept running, passing Raven, who easily grabbed onto the scruff of his neck and mounted his back as if he were a horse. As they followed through the door, Raven called out, "We will close this door. Voldemort, and we'll be back to send you to join my father in Hell!"

Blackness swirled around Raven as she was carried through the portal. She felt as if her body was being ripped to shreds and melted back together again. Suddenly the shredding and melting stopped and Thorne skidded to an immediate stop, as Raven hopped off his back.

She muttered incomprehensible words in a strained voice, slicing her hand with a knife and marking the stone archway with blood. The portal was instantly covered with the same writhing black mass that had previously blocked their path from the other side, "That should keep them from re-entering here again." Raven stood back, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Thorne brushed up against her and licked the wound on her hand. After a few swipes of his tongue the gash had closed completely, without even leaving a scar behind.

_look what the cat dragged in._ Entwined in one of Thorne's serpentine tails was the haggard form of Severus Snape.

"It's you!" Deanna drew her wand, "I thought you had the looks of a Death Eater!"

"If it wasn't for me, you'd be dead by now." Snape growled as Thorne set him down like a toy soldier. In a flash Snape had out his own wand.

"Just stop it, you two!" Raven growled to herself, her hand pressed to her temple, as a migraine was beginning to form. "That was the easy part..." she said softly, "We now have a long way to go, getting in was fairly simple, but getting out…."

"Where are we?" Snape asked. Raven looked around the room that the portal had deposited them in. It looked vaguely familiar.

_Do you remember this?_ she asked Thorne.

_yes.. and we should all go back now..._ he hissed uncomfortably, _you're in no shape to deal with what's to come..._

_I have to... It was my bright idea to drag us in here anyways_, she replied tiredly.

"Where are we?" Snape repeated. "And how do we get back?"

"We're in an alternate dimension... Not sure where exactly in the dimension we are... I was pretty incoherent the last time I was here," Raven replied as she leaned heavily against Thorn's leg. "As for getting out... Well, we definitely can't go out the way we came in... Otherwise we'll be attacked by Death Eaters."

Silence settled over the group before Snape finally spoke again.

"Uh... Is that -- that isn't your cat, is it?" he asked suddenly, eyeing the large feline with a mixture of fear and awe.

"Yeah, this is Thorne... He's... Hard to explain. He's part of a native and dominate species in this dimension called Draven cats." She pushed herself off of Thorne's shoulder and made her way to the back of the chamber where a doorway stood.

The archway was covered strange script and it led out into a miasma of darkness. Thorne followed her, scanning the arcane signs with mild interest.

_Can you help me with this?_ she sent to him.

Thorne nodded, and scanned the carvings, his large eyes narrowing in thought.

"What does it say?" came Snape's voice from right behind them. Raven jumped a little, startled.

"I... umm, Thorne's helping me translate..."

The Draven eyed the Potions Master critically for a moment.

_it says that to get beyond this chamber to the outside we must face our worst fears_, he hissed into everyone's minds.

Apprehension washed over Deanna's face. "Our worst fears... That shouldn't be too bad... Should it?"

Snape sneered at her slightly. "Love to see what yours is…" he muttered.

Deanna scowled but said nothing.

"Let's go. We don't have time for dallying about." Snape said before crossing the threshold, enveloped by darkness. Not to be outdone, Deana plunged right in after him, before Raven could stop them.

"Dammit!" she hissed as she smacked her hand into the door's archway before sliding her glove back on. Thorne shook his head before looking at her.

_would have been easier if we had all gone in together,_ he rumbled, _hope they haven't lost themselves in their fears..._

Raven sighed and held onto Thorne's scruff, "Let's go... You can find them... right?" Thorne nodded, his tails twitching in agitation. Both of them stepped through the portal, Thorne leading the way.

Snape prepared himself for a werewolf attack as he stepped through the threshold. . .

And straight into Dumbledore's office.

He blinked, totally surprised by his surroundings. Dumbledore didn't look up, but Snape could tell he was not in a very good mood.

Dumbledore began, "Sit. Now." Yes, definitely not a good mood.

He took the chair as Dumbledore rose from his desk and paced the room. This was reminding Snape of something, although he couldn't quite place what it was. Dumbledore continued to pace in silence until Snape thought the headmaster had forgotten he was in the room.

"Do you need to speak with me, Headmaster? Or should I leave?" Finally, Dumbledore faced him and Snape's blood froze. Dumbledore's face was twisted into a look of such sadness that it made Snape want to disappear. He had seen that face on him only once before. It was the day Snape had confessed he was a Death Eater.

This face, however, seemed ten times worse.

"You cannot fathom how ashamed I am of you." Dumbledore began quietly, "I risked my life, my career, my respectability by taking you under my protection and this is how you repay my kindness?" It was merely a question. There was no anger in his voice, only deep disappointment. "I trusted you, Snape. I see now that I was wrong."

_Snape._ Dumbledore never called him just plain _Snape_. "Headmaster," Snape started, surprised by the quiver in his own voice, "if I may speak--"

"No, you may not. There is nothing left to say." Snape was totally unprepared for this. If only Dumbledore would become angry or yell or hex him or do anything but be disappointed in him. He swallowed and could feel a lump forming in his throat.

_No. I am not going to cry. This is silly. It's not even real. It's not real. . ._ But his face still burned horribly.

"I'm afraid I no longer can allow you to stay at this school. You are hereby relieved of all your duties at Hogwarts. I'll ask you to never set foot on school grounds again."

"Albus!" Snape breathed, standing up.

"We are no longer on a first-name basis, Mr. Snape. I bid you good day. Please leave."

Raven and Thorne wandered through the swirling blackness. Thorne seemed to know where he was going as Raven held on tightly on to his scruff. She kept her eyes tightly shut, muttering to herself, "It's not real, it's not real, it's not real..." over and over again like a mantra.

_raven... i found the professor._

She slowly opened her eyes, trying to keep her mind clear, her thoughts focused. She saw Snape and Albus... The look on Dumbledore's face... how many times had she been afraid to see that very expression? Especially after what she did, after what had happened? But no.. there were worse things to be afraid of.. The scenery began to waver slightly.

_raven,_ Thorne hissed, _focus..._

She took a quavering breath, clearing her mind.. The scenery stilled and came into focus again. While still holding onto Thorne's scruff with a death grip, she made her way to stand behind Professor Snape. She placed a trembling hand on his shoulder.

"It... It's not real..." she whispered, her voice shaking, "Don't let it suck you in.."

"It... It's not real... Don't let it suck you in.."

Snape turned around sullenly. He could have sworn he heard something, but there was no one there. He took a deep breath and headed slowly for the door.

Severus' quarters had already been cleared of its contents. The house-elves must have done it. There was nothing left for him to do here. He wandered listlessly through the corridors for the last time and found himself in front of his office. He went inside. Everything was rearranged. The same, but different. He noticed several personal items on the desk and picked up a picture. James Potter was smiling and waving with one arm on Sirius' shoulder. On Sirius' other side, Lupin stood smiling and making multicolored sparks fly out of his wand at the camera.

The door opened and Snape quickly replaced the picture.

"You still here, vampire?" The new potions master spat. He couldn't believe who it was.

"Sirius! But you're. . .you can't. . ."

"I believe you are in my office...Snivellus."

"He gave you . . . but he. . .my job?"

"Dumbledore happens to think you're the one who caused my death. I think you should leave now. Or do you want me to call the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor? I think he knows how to deal with vampires."

"Who's teaching the DADA?"

"Me." The door opened, it was Lupin.

"You!"

"I think you should go now Severus," Lupin tossed him a smug look, "we don't need your kind here."

"You should talk, Lupin!" He growled, clenching and unclenching his fists.

"We're lucky Harry enlightened us to what really happened with Sirius." Lupin said while Sirius pulled a small vial from his desk drawer, "I mean, I'd always known you were a slimy git, but I never figured you'd push someone into-"

"But I didn't. . ." Snape spluttered, "I was only... It is NOT my fault, Lupin! It was his own damn fault if he threw caution to the wind and charged into battle like a fool!"

"You're a much craftier Death Eater than the rest, Snivellus, I'll give you that," Sirius said, "All this time we thought you were just being an ass when really you were putting us through psychological torture."

"I'm not...I didn't! After I risked my life in the service of Dumbledore? Surely you're not serious Sirius! Lupin! You believe me don't you? Don't you"

Lupin wouldn't meet his eyes, disgusted.

"Now!" Sirius yelled suddenly. Before Snape could react, Lupin had pinned Snape's arms behind his back. He struggled, trying to get loose, but he held Snape fast by the shoulders as Sirius walked out from behind his desk holding the vial.

"What are you doing?"

"I was hoping you'd try this potion I cooked up, I got the recipe from one of your own journals" Sirius' eyes appeared slightly crazed. He uncorked the vial and advanced towards Snape, who knew on instinct which potion that was.

Snape began to panic and struggled wildly against Lupin's iron grip. The tears he had successfully fought to conceal while in Dumbledore's office spilled forth with an urgency he had never before experienced, "Lupin! Please! Let me go! Dammit Lupin! I'm innocent! I swear to God I'm not a Death Eater anymore!" The vial was shoved in his face and he clamped his mouth shut, wildly fighting against his bonds and the vial. Sirius grabbed his nose and twisted it. There was a sickening crunch and Snape couldn't help but yelp in surprise.

The liquid was forced into his mouth and he spit it out (In Sirius' face, to his satisfaction). He spluttered as the bitter residue of the liquid stung his throat and lungs. His lips became numb and his throat felt as though it were on pins and needles. Blood and tears flowed freely.

"Damn you!" He wheezed. Lupin finally released him and he fell to the floor. Severus felt his insides give a sickening squelch.

"Do you know what it's like falling through the Veil?" Sirius drawled, savoring each syllable, "I do."

Snape's throat felt raw and hot as it disintegrated. He was suffocating in his own fluids. He turned to Lupin, who looked quite sick to his stomach. His lungs screamed for air even as they began to break down. He ears rang and his stomach bloated as the gasses collected. In his mouth he tasted bile and blood and death. Blackness creped around the edges of his vision and he thought that death could not come soon enough.


	3. Chapter 3: Fear Itself

_**Chapter 3: Fear itself**_

Snape convulsed on the floor, his eyes rolling back in his head, as Raven just stood there with a look of horror on her face.

_don't just stand there, do something!_ Thorne hissed into her mind, galvanizing her into action. She knelt beside Snape, and muttered softly, "Sorry about this..."

She raised her hand and smacked him, hard.

"Wake-up, Dammit!" she yelled. Snape continued to convulse. She grabbed his shoulders and shook him. Still he continued to lay there, twitching. Raven took a deep breath and began to smack him over and over again, harder than before.

"Wake-up! Don't just lie there!" she snarled, "Fight it!"

Raven raised her arm to smack him once more when a hand grabbed her wrist, stopping her. Snape sat up slowly, his cheeks red from her blows.

She stood and helped him up as well, as he rubbed his cheeks gingerly.

"Thank you.. I think..." he winced. He looked around for a moment, as if unsure of what had just happened.

"You were sucked into your fear..." she said quietly, "I had to force you out of it somehow. You believed that it was real, so it affected you as if it were... If I hadn't hit you, you would have choked to death."

Snape's eyes narrowed. "Did you see my fear?"

Raven said nothing, just turned back to Thorne, running her fingers through his mane.

"What did you see?" he hissed. Raven rubbed the bridge of her nose with her free hand.

"Let's just say that you should count yourself very lucky that it was I that saw your fear, and not the hunter..." She looked up at him finally, her eyes filled with weariness. "But rest assured I won't tell her... You're not the only one with a skeleton in his closet."

Snape opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He was struck speechless for the moment. Raven seized the opportunity to distract him.

"Grab one of Thorne's tails. He'll lead us to Deanna so we can get the hell out of here."

Snape did as she said, strangely subdued. Raven held onto Thorne's scruff as they wandered through black mists to find Deanna.

"Murderer!" A pale young man howled mournfully, gathering a bloody bundle into his arms, "We just wanted to be left alone!" He said through racking sobs which left trails down his ensanguined face, "What did she ever do to deserve this? She was just a child! Just a child." He pressed the lifeless form to him, rocking it lovingly, as if his sobs were some kind of macabre lullaby.

Deanna stood transfixed by the small bloody form. She still held the instrument of the child's death. She shook herself. _No_, she thought desperately, _She is- was not just a child, she was a vampire. No… I can't become emotionally involved, I can't…_

And yet she couldn't tear her eyes away from the horrific scene that sprawled before her. For a moment, she was beside herself, looking at the entire scene, like watching a movie. _Who is the monster here? Who is the life-sucking messenger of death now? Oh God…_

The scene had changed, she now stood on what looked like a battlefield. Bodies were strewn haphazardly, irreverently piled, some half naked, some covered in the grime of war, some encrusted in dried blood. It was as silent as death, and just as cold. She shivered. Something brushed up against her leg and she jumped. It was a blackbird with what looked like an eye dangling from its beak. Deanna felt nauseous.

The bird gave a great croak and flew off a few feet into the lead-lined dawn. Not knowing why, she ran after it, trying not to step on the dead in her path. It flew on until she could find it no longer.

"Why do you watch where you step?" A voice said in her ear.

"Perhaps she is afraid she will fall into our stench."

"Afraid to sully yourself, hunter?"

She spun around unable to pinpoint where the voices were coming from. Suddenly, there was a loud croak in front of her. The blackbird had returned. "That's not why!" She whispered, "That's not why!" She said to it.

Before her eyes, the blackbird transformed into the girl from before, the one she had killed.

"Why do you watch where you step?" She repeated the question.

"Because it wouldn't... It wouldn't be right," Deanna stammered.

"They are only vampires. They do not deserve your reverence."

"It's… it's not like that! You don't know, okay! You have no idea…"

"I think I have a very good idea." The girl said with an earnestness that belied her seven-year-old face, "You are the Destroyer of Worlds… you descend upon us like the Angel of Death --"

"Stop --"

"All fear your power over them. And you _like_ it --"

"NO!"

"You thrill in the hunt... the chase..."

"I protect the innocent!"

"How like a goddess you pour out your wrath --"

"STOP IT!"

"-- and Death falls like rain, upon all: the evil and the innocent --"

"I don't want to hear this --"

"-- the rich and the poor --"

"Stop it, please! Just stop --"

"-- the happy and the miserable --"

"I said to stop!" In a flash, Deanna held a knife to her throat. She just wanted her to stop talking, and if it meant cutting off her head…

"Are you going to kill me again, hunter?" The girl hadn't flinched, she just looked up, curious, as if she was asking about the weather. 

Deanna let the blade fall into the mud.

She fell to her knees, exhausted and miserable and half-mad with guilt, "What have I become?" she whispered to herself, retrieving the blade from the mire and hesitatingly putting it back into her belt. She was answered by a rough and rather large tongue that licked the side of her face. Deanne opened her eyes to the sight of two very large green eyes looking down at her. She scooted backwards, disoriented, and realized that instead of the girl, Thorne, Raven and Snape stood before her.

"We got to you just in time," Raven said softly, looking extremely exhausted. Snape said nothing at all, a sullen look fixed upon his face, while he avoided Deanna's eyes. Raven motioned for Deanna to grab onto Thorne's scruff. "Hold on to him tightly so we don't get separated.. He'll get us out of here." She then grabbed Thorne's second tail and motioned for the Draven cat to start walking.

_why didn't you ask her to take my tail?_ he asked curiously.

_I don't want them snapping at each other_, she replied wearily. _Please, just get us out of here... Quickly._

Thorne cast one last worried glance at Raven before they navigated their way through the mists.

The group's footsteps began to echo as the mists cleared to reveal a stone hallway. Thorne paused for a moment, unsure of what was happening. He increased his pace, and the others had to jog just to keep up with him. As they wandered further down the hallway, they came to a large portrait of a cruelly handsome man with emerald green eyes and silver hair.

"Oh god... not this..." Raven whispered.

The others turned to look at her, but she was no longer there.

"Where is she?" Deanna asked, looking around wildly.

Thorne let out an inarticulate roar of anger and frustration. _the strain was too much for her..._ he hissed to the others. _her fear has taken her. we must find her before..._

The room wavered as the scenery changed. They found themselves in a library. A small girl with black hair and large green eyes sat contritely on the edge of a chair. It was an extremely young Raven. Looming over her was the man from the portrait, his eyes blazing like green poison.

"What have I told you about touching my books?" he boomed at the child. She said nothing, but kept her eyes downcast. The man snarled and backhanded the girl hard, knocking her near halfway across the room with the force. She landed with a sickening crunch.

"Stop it!" Deanna yelled, trying to grab the man that now stood over the prone child. Her hands passed right through him.

_don't bother_, Thorne sent with barely controlled fury, _we won't be able to affect anything until we find the real raven... until then we have to sort through her memories until we locate her..._

Deanna turned away, her face filled with outrage and disgust.

"Who is he anyway?" she asked softly as they walked away from the man, who was now kicking the little girl.

_that was raven's father, viktor..._

They wandered into another memory, Raven was a little bit older and hiding under a bed. She was writing a scroll for her charms class, with only a small stub of a candle to light her work. She froze at the sound of pounding footsteps, and quickly blew out the candle and held very still.

"Raven!" her father's voice yelled. "Where are you?"  
She kept silent, holding her breath and keeping her eyes shut tight. After a few moments she heard stomping steps and the slam of a door. She let out her breath and was about to light her candle again when a hand grabbed her leg and roughly pulled her out from under the bed. Thorne plowed on, trembling in anger, not wanting to witness anymore.

Finally they could hear the sounds of voices arguing.

"You will do as I say, girl." Viktor hissed.

"Never.. I'm not a child anymore, you can't force me.." came Raven's voice.. The voice of an adult.. Thorne dashed towards the voice, pulling Snape and Deanna behind him.

They came to a room, where Viktor stood facing a 17-year-old Raven. Her eyes blazed with anger and defiance. Her father tilted his head and snarled at her, before backhanding her hard across the face, sending her to the ground.

"You need to be taught a lesson, you little bitch." he hissed as he pulled a curved dagger from his belt.

Raven's eyes widened and she scrambled across the floor in a vain effort to get away, but he was faster, using the blade on her with a ruthless efficiency...

Deanna turned away, tears welling up in her eyes. Thorne howled in anger, his fur bristling. Snape stood and watched, his face unreadable. Viktor finally stood up, tossing the dagger carelessly to the floor, before leaving the room. The young Raven curled into a ball, whimpering as she clutching at her tattered clothing, bleeding profusely from the multitude of cuts that now covered her body.

Snape's eyes alighted on a figure hunched in a corner of the room. He pulled on Thorne's tail to get his attention. The Draven cat looked towards the direction that Snape was pointing to and saw real Raven sitting on the floor, her face blank, her eyes dead and dull-looking. Both the young and the real Raven stood up. The young Raven picked up the dagger that her father had used on her, while the real one pulled the same dagger from her robes.

Thorne hissed in alarm and jumped towards Raven to stop her, causing Snape to lose his grip and fall to the ground. Deanna was jerked forwards with Thorne on his mad dash.

The Draven cat lunged wildly at the real Raven but passed through her as if he were a ghost. She didn't even notice him as she methodically peeled off one of her gloves and held the blade to her bared wrist.

Thorne looked at Snape, his eyes full of fear and despair.

_DO SOMETHING!_ he yowled in the Potions Master's head before his form began to flicker. Then in an instant both Thorne and Deanna were gone.

Snape hesitated for a moment before he rushed Raven, grabbing her wrists and holding them behind her. The dagger clattered to the floor, but Raven struggled like a wildcat in his grip. Finally Raven stopped her erratic movements and slumped to the floor like a broken puppet, her eyes still dead and haunted. Snape slipped the curved blade into his vial case to keep it from slicing his pocket.

"Raven," he said, kneeling next to her fallen form. Pulling out his wand, he commanded, "Ennervate!" It didn't work. He was hoping he wouldn't have to slap her like she did him, "Raven, wake up!" He shook her by the shoulders as hard as he could. Nothing. He slapped her lightly across the face. It didn't work. Wincing, he slapped her a little harder this time. Not even a sign that she was alive. He repeated this until he thought he couldn't have slapped her harder without fracturing her jaw and still, nothing. She was clearly farther gone than he had been.

_What can I do?_

He thought quickly, rifling through options in his mind until he fell on one he thought could work. He went to pull his potions kit out of his pocket when his hand closed on a bottle. Phoenix tears. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at it, hesitating. It was for emergencies only, but if this wasn't an emergency….

He uncorked the bottle and raised it to Raven's lips. The milky pearlescent liquid passed between them, and almost immediately, Raven groaned and began to wake. He quickly shoved the empty bottle back in his pocket and helped her sit up.

"What happened?" She gingerly felt her jaw and Snape helped her stand up. They were both shaky.

"I'm- I'm sorry I had to slap you so hard, you were very far gone, I think. I almost thought it wouldn't work." There was no need for her to know about the phoenix tears.

"Thanks... I think." She smiled weakly.

Raven fingered her swollen cheeks, and let out a mirthless chuckle, "I guess we're even now..."

Snape's head snapped up, "What?"

She avoided his eyes and began playing with the sleeve of her robe. "I mean, about the whole smacking bit..." she mumbled. The both of them stood in an uncomfortable silence.

Snape was the first to speak, "I had no idea." Snape said quietly, "I was wrong not to suspect… I knew Viktor. I should have known… It seems obvious now."

Raven stiffened slightly. "How... How did you know my father?" she asked with forced casualness.

Snape mentally cursed his indiscretion. "We were associates," he said, hoping that didn't shout "Death Eater" to Raven. Suddenly an odd look crossed over Raven's face.

"What's wrong?" Snape asked, panicking inwardly and fighting the urge to grab his left arm.

Raven's brow furrowed with worry. "I- I don't know.. Something's happened to Thorne..."


	4. Chapter 4: Smoke and Mirrors

_**Smoke and Mirrors**_

Thorne and Deanna found themselves surrounded by black mists, separated from the others. The Draven cat looked around wildly, his eyes burning. Deanna moved along the side of his body and hopped on his back, as she had seen Raven do before. She wasn't getting separated from him again. The large feline didn't seem to notice her at all as he sniffed the air, a low growl building in his throat.

Dark shapes writhed as multi-colored eyes stared out at them, and low growls and snarls echoed in the darkness around them. Thorne hissed again, his fur bristling in anger.

"Where the hell are we?" Deanna whispered, holding tightly to Thorne's mane. He again acted as if he couldn't hear her.

"Hello? Can you hear me?" She tried to gain his attention by tugging on his ear, but still got no reaction.

Thorne's body tensed up, as the black shapes took form and loomed over him. Even though Thorne in his natural form seemed alarmingly huge for a cat, he was still very young, not yet at his full growth; the creatures that were born from the shadows were fully grown, larger than houses. With large glowing eyes the size of dinner plates, these beasts were at least five times Thorne's size.

_moonslayeerrrrr,_ came an icy hiss that sent a shiver up both Thorne and Deanna's backs. A monstrous Draven cat stood in front of Thorne, dwarfing him with its immense size. The huge cat's single eye glowed an eerie yellow; his long fangs hung over his lips like tusks.

_go away, shadow!_ Thorne hissed, his back arching, nearly knocking Deanna off her perch.

_coward... you can't even protect your pet human_, the larger Draven cat purred as he stepped aside. Raven lay on the ground behind him, her body torn and ripped asunder, her dead eyes staring glassily into nothingness.

_NOOOOOOOOOO!_ Thorne roared, running to Raven's corpse. He laid his head down on what was left of her chest and howled in mourning.

Deanna gingerly slid off his back and grabbed handfuls of fur on either side of Thorne's face, trying to get him to look at her. His eyes were now glassy-looking as tears slid down his cheeks.

"C'mon, this isn't real!" she yelled, yanking on his fur, trying yet again to illicit some sort of reaction from him. Thorne still did not respond.

Suddenly an idea popped into Deanna's head. One of her old classmates at Hogwarts had tons of cats, and had once told her the secret to disciplining felines. Cats had very sensitive noses and when you flicked them there, it tended to stop them in their tracks. So, knowing that doing this might incur the large feline's wrath, but really not seeing any other choice, Deanna flicked her nails across Thorne's snout.

He flinched back, snarling, his large eyes blinking in surprise as they returned to awareness.

_wha-where... what happened?_

"You had me worried there," she stated, noticing that Raven's corpse and the large Draven cats were now gone, to be replaced by swirling blackness. "I guess you were sucked into your fears as well, eh?"

Thorne let out a disgruntled noise as he rubbed his tender nose gingerly with his paw. _did you really have to do that so hard?_

Deanna shrugged, "Hey, what else was I supposed to do? It knocked you out of it, right?"

_i suppose_, he conceded with ill grace. _c'mon, let's find the others..._

Raven closed her eyes, opening the mental link that she and Thorne shared.

_Thorne?_

There was no answer. Raven hissed in frustration as Snape raised an eyebrow.

"Is there a problem?"

"Not sure yet..." she muttered, as she concentrated harder and sent again.

_THORNE? You there?_

Raven felt grief and rage roll through their mental link, then confusion...

_Thorne?_ she sent again worriedly.

_i'm here_, came a soft reply.

Raven let out a breath of relief. _I was worried about you, damned feline... Where are you?_

_i'll be with you shortly._ He paused before he continued almost timidly, _are you okay?_

_Yeah..._

"Well, have you found them?" Snape asked, a trace of irritation creeping in his voice.

Raven opened her eyes, and smiled.

"I'll take that as a yes," he smirked.

Thorne and Deanna suddenly appeared in front of them. The cat's eyes brightened at the sight of Raven and he proceeded to butt his large head against her chest and purr very loudly. Raven smiled, a real genuine smile that seemed to light up her entire face. She hugged the Draven cat for a moment before pulling away.

"Alright everyone, let's get the hell outta here."

The room seemed to be as timeless as the grave. The dark swirling masses stretched on into the distance and obscured a clear view of the room. Snape wondered if that was the essence of their fears. It seemed an appropriate medium: a dark smoke with no real substance to it. They walked on and on until they were sure that somehow they were wandering in circles.

"Are you positive you know the way?" Snape asked although he wasn't quite sure who he was addressing. No one answered.

They walked on and on and still the undulating smoke threatened to suck them in, like some sort of liquid dementor. That gave Snape a thought. He pulled out his wand, thought of the happiest thing he could manage under the circumstances and said softly, "_Expecto patronum_."

A silver wisp fought its way from his wand and died.

"Damn," He stopped and closed his eyes, sighing heavily and trying again to conjure happy thoughts. Suddenly a smile crept onto his face and he raised his wand, more confidently, "_Expecto Patronum!_"

Glowing silver smoke shot out of Snape's wand and splintered off into many smaller flying shapes. The swarm pushed its way through the black smoke, fighting at it mercilessly. Suddenly, the flock faded to reveal a path straight to a door.

Deanna gave him a funny look, "Bats?"

Outside, they found themselves on a moonlit street. Even in the darkness, everything seemed familiar somehow...

"This -- this can't be right..." Raven surveyed the area.

"What, do you recognize where we are?"

"I'm not sure." She looked critically at the scenery, turning slowly until she was looking over her shoulder. She gasped, "Look where we are!" She pointed to the building they had just come from. Snape turned around.

"That's the Shrieking Shack! Sort of…"

"It looks so different."

"If that's the Shrieking Shack, we must be in Hogsmeade," Snape mumbled to himself.

Snape noticed Deanna was peering into the darkness, as if looking for something.

"What's the matter?" Raven whispered.

"There is a vampire here." She clutched her necklace, the only piece of jewelry she owned. The pendant was glowing a soft red.

Snape tensed as he peered into the darkness. Thorne made himself less conspicuous and shrunk down to his housecat size.

Suddenly, a shape slipped up alongside them; it was definitely a human shape, tall and thin and well dressed. He walked up to them confidently and stated with authority, "It is past curfew. I will need to see your papers."

All four of them started in surprise. They all knew that voice -- it was Snape's.


	5. Chapter 5: Bloodlust

**Bloodlust**

The man stepped closer and they could clearly see the resemblance; he had the same face as Snape, which was looking at them disdainfully, but his eyes were a brilliant green. His silky black hair was no longer greasy or in his face, but hung down his back in a tight ponytail nearly down to his toes.

"Well?" Said the man, testily, "I haven't got all night!"

Snape instinctively pulled his hood to better hide his own face. When he spoke, his voice was an octave lower than normal, "Ah, yes, our papers, um…" He rummaged through his robe, as the others made similar searching motions while stealing worried glances at one another.

"Well?"

"I... er... we must have left them..."

"Where?"

"Uhhh..."

"At our room," Raven blurted out, "at the Three Broomsticks." Snape crossed his fingers, hoping it existed.

"At the Three Broomsticks, I see," the man with Snape's voice said silkily. "Well then! Perhaps we should go down to the Three Broomsticks and get them, shall we?" Snape could almost imagine the triumphant smirk on his face, "Come along, follow me!"

They walked behind him, each of them looking at each other worriedly. What would this Snape do if they didn't have their papers? Deanna kept a suspicious eye on him, for he was the vampire she had sensed, but they all seemed to have an unspoken understanding that they needed to find out a little more about this world before making their intentions known. Anything less would be reckless. Thorne got between them and the Snape-Vampire and began to purr loudly. It took them a minute before realizing he was creating a noise buffer so they could plan what they were going to do.

"Snape!" a sharp voice called. The unmistakable click, click of high heels hitting pavement carried easily through the night air, and in a few moments another figure emerged. It was a woman this time, wearing heavy black robes and a deep green pendant. The angry clicking slowed as she neared the group, and when she stopped in front of Snape her features became more evident.

Crimson red lips, painted or otherwise, were most prominent on her pale face. Annoyed, she shoved a wisp of black hair behind her ear and addressed the vampiric Snape.

"You haven't checked in lately. Over an hour late. The group was becoming worried; one of our best members, lost, killed, captured. I was sent to find you."

A mocking tone crept into her words, but as soon as she had finished speaking she shivered, taking away some of the bite of her speech. He scowled and turned to face her, wishing to put this trifling problem to order immediately.

"Lestrange, don't be stupid. I am not --" he sneered now "-- required to check in like a mewling child every hour. Do you really think I am unsafe at night? Besides," he continued, his tone becoming more pointed, "I have been occupied."

"Like hell you've been 'occupied' with this shoddy group for an hour, Snape," the woman replied snappishly. "And why would I want to come out here after you if not under orders?"

"Simple. You do not trust me."

A sinuously evil smile touched Lestrange's lips, and she laughed aloud. In the empty streets of Hogsmeade, the unnatural laugh echoed slowly into silence, and she looked at Snape with an amused expression.

"You're absolutely right, Snape. I don't. Where are you taking them?"

"The Three Broomsticks. They claim to have left their papers there."

Her smile widened, revealing perfect, white teeth. The absence of any deformity made the woman seem even more twisted. She appeared to revel in the others' growing discomfort, and peered at them all the more closely.

"I will accompany you there, of course. I'm sure there will be no problems locating the papers there..." Lestrange turned back to the vampiric Snape with a knowing smirk and an excited gleam in her eyes.

Suddenly, where once sat a simple house cat was now a juvenile Draven cat. Snape and Lestrange gasped for a moment before composing themselves. Even though Thorne was young, the tops of their heads barely reached his shoulder. He smiled to reveal rows of sharp teeth.

_i grow weary of this game_, he purred into everyone's mind. _it appears that my brother may have been wrong on how lax you security is.._. Thorne stretched out, his wings spreading and his dagger-like claws tearing into the hard ground.

"What is this? What's going on here?" snapped the Vampire-Snape, his eyes glowing in anger.

Thorne narrowed his green eyes at him._ i suggest you don't take that tone with me, _he growled.

"We meant no disrespect," Lestrange smiled through clenched teeth, "There have been security breaches as of late..."

_which is why i was sent to test you, _Thorne rumbled, his mental voice dripping with disgust._ i am moonslayer bloodstone, brother of shadow bloodstone, and these -- _he jerked his head to indicate Raven, Deanna and Snape -- _are my... pets._

Thorne turned his poison green gaze on the three companions. _play along_, he added in a private message.

"Your... pets? You let them wander around unchecked?" The green-eyed Snape scoffed, his eyebrow raised.

Thorne snarled and in a movement much too quick for anyone to follow, Snape was on the ground, with the Draven cat's paw on his chest, his claws pressed against the vampire's neck. One move and Thorne could have easily decapitated him.

_you need to learn your place in the food chain, vampire, he hissed. right now i am at the top _-- Thorne pressed his claws in a little deeper, drawing blood -- _and you are at the bottom_.

"Moonslayer... um... sir?" Lestrange piped up, trying to gently draw his attention. She might have personally enjoyed it if the Draven cat had killed Snape, but she had been told to bring him back in one piece.

Thorne looked up at her, his eyes narrowed in fury. She gulped and continued. "I assure you, he meant nothing by it... They had no papers, and policy states that if there are no papers --"

_your stupid human policies do not apply to me and my kind... _he hissed before taking his paw off Snape's neck. The vampire glared at the Draven cat with intense hatred and loathing, but said nothing as he stood up and dusted himself off.

_now, if you are finished wasting my time, we will be leaving_. Thorne glared at Raven, who nodded slightly before leading the others away from Hogsmeade and into the forest. Thorne sat there waiting until they were out of sight. He then turned his eyes on Snape.

_next time we meet, vampire, i suggest you keep that forked tongue of yours on a leash... _he hissed before disappearing into the shadows.

He caught up with the others a short distance away.

_c'mon,_ he sent to them as he coiled one of his tails around Raven's wrist. _i know a safe place where we can rest. it's not far from here_.

The subdued group silently made their way through the forest until they reached a small cave.

The adrenaline rush of the events of the day began to wear off and Snape suddenly felt so… empty. He stared into the fire as if looking at it would help fill him with a kind of non-physical warmth. It didn't work. He still felt drained. How had he gotten himself into this? Oh right, Dumbledore had asked him, in his indirect way. Sometimes he wondered why he cared so much about what Dumbledore thought of him. After the events of today, he certainly couldn't deny, even to himself, that he cared.

That still stunned him. Out of all the things he was afraid of, that was the thing which the room had chosen to create. How could Dumbledore's trust mean that much to him? He thought back over the years. He could see it now, like he never had before. It almost seemed laughably obvious. Who had he turned to when he realized being a Death Eater was not a wise career move? Dumbledore. Why had he risked his life all those years as a spy? Dumbledore. Why had he gone down the rabbit hole and ended up in this godforsaken world? Dumbledore.

It still didn't answer his question of why Dumbledore's trust and friendship mattered. Is that what it was? Was Dumbledore really his friend? He thought hard, progressively moving backwards in time in his mind. He couldn't remember ever thinking of Dumbledore as anything other than a colleague. But then again, professors don't normally risk their lives on a regular basis for their headmasters.

So Dumbledore was Snape's friend. When had that happened? Again he thought back, all the way back to his darkest hours, when he finally decided he had had enough of being a Death Eater. Why had he thought Dumbledore would truly believe his story of reform? He realized with a start that Dumbledore had impacted his life even earlier than that.

Snape had almost been twelve. A Hogwarts second year, or, he would have been, if he could have. All he knew was that there were people not allowing him to attend school. They said it would be too dangerous. But then, he remembered a man with a long graying auburn beard had visited their house. It was almost Snape's twelfth birthday when Dumbledore showed up at the door (at almost nine p.m.) and talked long into the night with his parents. He couldn't hear what they were discussing -- not that he cared much anyway -- but they finally called him down from his room.

"Severus, you'll never believe who this is!" He mother said, beaming at him.

"Who?"

"Hello, Severus," he said, shaking the boy's hand. "I'm Albus Dumbledore. I'm the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Snape's pale young face scowled at the mention of school. "So? I don't go there," he said pointedly.

But Dumbledore smiled kindly at him, "That's exactly why I'm here, Severus. Would you like to go to Hogwarts?"

"I'm not allowed. Because of my… condition." He scowled again; it was sad to see one so young make a face like that.

"But would you like to go?"

"Yes."

"I thought so," He smiled, his eyes twinkling, "Than I promise you. You shall go."

Thorne had settled close to the fire, Raven curled up against him. He watched her for a moment, comforted by the sound of her quiet breathing.

Raven squirmed slightly in her sleep, as memories that she had locked up long ago began to creep into her dreams. She could hear her father's thundering voice, as she tried to run away from him. Her legs wouldn't move, she was trapped..

Raven began whimpering softly in her sleep, and tears leaked from her eyes. Thorne made a worried chirping noise as he nuzzled her, hoping to offer some comfort, but it didn't appear to be working. He was tempted to wake her up, but she had been so weak and exhausted that any sleep was a blessing. He sighed and licked the tears from her face, before settling down to take a nap.

_I'm not a murderer_, Deanna thought sulkily. The room was nothing but a lie. She kicked at a stone and sent it into the fire they'd made in the cave, sending up a small cloud of embers. She watched them float down again.

It was a slow day (or night, rather) in the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, vampire division. Deanna drummed her fingers on the stack of parchment beside her desk. She hated slow days with nothing but paperwork to do. She hated paperwork. She looked up at the clock, nearly three in the morning. She yawned and shoved her paperwork aside. She needed to stretch.

She passed the front office where Maleficent Macnair sat filling out the Daily Prophet crossword puzzle, looking quite as bored as Deanna felt. The coffee room was down the hall. She took her time reheating the coffee cauldron as she stretched her legs. Stifling another yawn, she headed back to her office with the mug of coffee.

She heard two people arguing… one she recognized, one she didn't.

"She's out at the moment, sir. You will wait your turn, like everyone else," said a bored-sounding voice belonging to Maleficent.

"There is no one else here," the other voice said in a low, strained sort of whisper.

"Sir, please sit down."

"I've been waiting for nearly an hour. I've filled out all the paperwork. Please... just let me leave."

"Your interview isn't for another fifteen minutes."

"I can't wait that long!"

"You will if you don't want to be breaking Ministry laws on vampire registration."

"Can't I owl you later?" he cried, desperation in his voice.

"All vampires must submit to an interview on the date and time scheduled by the Ministry."

Deanna peered into the room. The vampire was standing over the desk where Maleficent continued to do her crossword puzzle. He held tightly onto the desk scratching the veneer off with his nails.

"Sit down sir, you're breathing on my neck."

'_What is she doing?'_ Deanna thought. Although the vampires back was to her, she could tell he was looking very ill. He needed to leave. He looked as though he hadn't fed properly. She shook her head. It was basic Magical Creature training and Maleficent hadn't noticed yet? Deanna snorted, thinking about all the times in Care of Magical creatures class, how Maleficent had never failed to remind everyone that her uncle worked in the dangerous creatures department at the Ministry. How she had been so outstanding in magical creatures that the Ministry was falling over itself to snap her up…Deanna rolled her eyes. It had nothing at all to do with her uncle getting her the job…nothing at all…

'_Let's see how well you really do with magical creatures_.' Deanna stood in the doorway and folded her arms. She was finally going to show up that stuck-up witch. This would be a day to remember.

Maleficent brushed her quill to her lips, "What's a five-letter word for a common mixture whose main ingredient is erythrocytes?"

"Blood," the vampire said immediately.

"Oh right... I knew that o--" She couldn't say any more; the vampire had brought his hand to her throat in one quick motion, and there was a sickening crunch as her airway snapped.

Deanna shook herself to clear her head. _I'm not a murderer_, she thought, _Maleficent was a fool. There wasn't anything I could have done._

"Fool," she said under her breath, but now she wondered if that sentiment should be directed at Maleficent, or at herself.

Snape awoke, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up straight. He looked around, and his eyes slowly adjusted to the dimness of the cave. The fire had nearly guttered out, and it cast faint, flickering shadows all around. Deanna was still asleep in her corner and Thorne was softly snoring on his side, but Raven was nowhere to be seen. Snape stood up and stretched, his back muscles popping. He walked out of the cave, gazing around, when his eyes caught a small pile of clothes neatly stacked by the entrance. It was Raven's robe and gloves...

_Curiouser and curiouser_, Snape thought before walking out into the night.

The woods stretched out in all directions, and Snape took the utmost care not to get lost. He took out his wand and thought, Point me. His wand spun in response to the nonverbal command, pointing due north. After memorizing the position of the cave in relation to the compass, he walked on.

Where was Raven? He was getting agitated. The group shouldn't become separated, he thought she would have known that. While walking, he planned the speech he was going to give her about her irresponsibility in leaving the group and not telling anyone where she was going. And without any clothes! He was wondering what exactly he'd find… Who knew what sort of dangers were in these woods, at once so familiar and yet so strange?

He began to feel uncomfortable himself... the moon was setting, and it would soon be day. He stopped by a tree to put in his contacts. That was when he smelled it. Blood.

Snape walked a little faster, his stomach rumbling in spite of himself. He swore. Without realizing it, he followed the scent. He broke into a clearing where there was a trail of blood and gore. Something had been killed here, and it must have happened recently...

His nostrils flared as he followed the blood trail, until he came to a large tree. Scattered on the ground were freshly stripped bones, most of which were cracked open, the marrow sucked out, and just resting against the base of the trunk was a skull. It looked to be of the rodent family, but it was enormous, almost bigger than his own head...

Suddenly there was rustling in the branches above him. Snape looked up to see a vaguely humanoid, but clearly female, figure crouched on an overhanging branch, holding a stripped bone. A pair of eyes, large and green and set in a face that was a mixture of human and feline features, regarded him with shock.

The creature moved away from him and farther into the woods, keeping to the tree branches. Snape relaxed and brought his wand down to his side.

"HURRY!" a voice shouted in his ear so loudly he nearly dropped his wand. The person who had shattered the pre-dawn silence pushed at Snape's side in the direction of the eyes. "After her! You won't catch her like that, will you? Too slow, you are! Two slow legs, when she has four! Four and twenty black cats baked in a pie... Blood pie! Fly, sky, try, Try to fly in the sky…"

"What?" The darkness was waning and pale light filtered into the clearing through the trees, but had not yet reached into the shadows where odd man stood.

"No, no, listen, don't listen to me, listen. Said the Butterfly. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Bumblebee… dumble bumble mumble crumble fumble …stupid insect…humming humble bumble…"

The man stopped shoving Snape and seemed to float off into his own private world. He started to wander off into the woods again, humming something that was vaguely familiar…

She jumped from branch to branch, determined to get back to the cave unseen. She landed hard on a rotted branch and suddenly lost her footing as it crumbled underneath her and she crashed hard onto the leaf-littered ground.

The creature scrambled onto her feet, hearing the sound of someone carelessly making their way towards her. She shifted to her human shape and realized that she was covered in blood and gore. Raven backed up against a tree, hiding herself in the shadows.

Suddenly an old man crashed through the underbrush and walked right past her towards the cave, mumbling and cackling senselessly to himself.

Raven barely tasted the blood on her lips as she murmurred, "What the...?"

Another shape followed, a little stealthier and more familiar than the last. Snape. Quickly Raven used her claws to climb up the nearest limb of a tree. At first, she thought he was going to pass her as the old man had, but he stopped in front of her tree. He breathed in deeply and a glazed expression came over his face.

Too afraid to move, Raven pressed herself against the trunk of the tree, holding her breath.. Her leg hurt from her earlier spill. Suddenly she lost her grip and slid down the trunk, landing in an ungraceful heap.

She winced and slowly stood up to find Snape staring at her with an intense gaze. She felt vulnerable, embarrassed and exposed.. She wasn't nude but had on the Muggle clothing she always wore under her robes: a tank top, some shorts... They were now covered in blood and gore.

Raven averted her eyes from his as she tried to wipe the blood from her lips and face.

Too afraid to move, Snape stood there, staring. Raven wiped crimson off of her lips, smearing it onto the back of her hand. He watched it. He stared at her hand. _Don't move_, Snape told himself, _do nothing. You will just stand there. Stay put_.

'_Don't move_' became his mantra for an agonizing minute. His higher brain, his sensible self had nearly shut itself off. Only one word rang through his mind. But he knew, if he did nothing, didn't move at all, nothing would happen. He just stared.

Blood. There was just so much of it... His stomach made a very angry noise at him.

"Raven..." his voice came out, strangled and unnatural-sounding, "...do not move."

She found her voice. "What's the matter? You look... odd." Even odder, perhaps, than the old man who had come barreling through the woods a moment ago.

"Contact Thorne and tell them to bring the red vial that is in my traveling cloak, that's the red one that smells of blood... or else bring the hunter…."

_Don't move, don't move, don't move_…

Raven looked momentarily confused.

"I have to tell you ... I'm a vampire," he said, still in that unnatural voice.

"I know, remember?" Raven wondered briefly if he had lost his memory as well as his sense. "What's the potion?" she asked curiously.

Right. She had seen his fear.

"It's Vampire's Bane. It keeps me from... from..."

And then, it began.

In his mind's eye, he could see himself, biting into Raven like some kind of wild beast. Completely amoral. He could feel her life's blood….

_I mustn't think this_. Snape shook his head to clear it, but his pulse quickened anyway. _Don't move, don't move, dammit! Don't move! If you hadn't left your potion behind, this never would have happened... Don't move don't move don't…._

"They are still a ways off.." she said quietly, cursing herself for being so messy in her feeding... but it had been so long...

She stepped towards him, and he automatically stepped back.

"If... If you need to feed, you can do so from me..." Her eyes flashed as she held out her arm towards him. "I promise you, you won't hurt me."

"Like hell I won't." Snape's face screwed up in a look of hatred and fear as he remembered himself being bitten, and for a moment Snape thought he had mastered himself. But his thoughts increasingly turned favorably on his attacker, and it utterly appalled and disgusted him even as his thoughts slipped back to blood with a fierce single-mindedness. He shivered and his mouth began to water.

She stepped forward, he stepped back, like some bizarre courting dance.

How long has it been, Snape? Too long? Fifteen years long? Longer even? The last vestiges of his sensibilities began to give way...

He moved.

She held out her arm to him and he couldn't stand there anymore. _Maybe, maybe if I just…I will not bite her_, he told himself, _I'll just lick the blood from her arm_… He knew, though, that he would never be able to hold to that.

He stepped forward and took Raven's hand. _Licking only. No biting_.

That lasted for all of two seconds, for Raven stepped even closer to him, pushing her blood soaked hair away and exposing her neck...

It was just too much for Snape. His higher reasoning flickered and died, and he fastened his mouth to her neck.


End file.
